Page:Betelguese, a trip through hell.djvu/52

44 Affrighted at the raving horde

That crash thro' leprous filth and light—

Disastrous sights of men gone mad! And pyramidal wall of rock

Are battle-grounds for waging lust: A clashing lance spun vypers round

The gyrus rind where helots clad

Each Thaumaturgist in a frock,

The sign of which spake added trust

Unto each ghoul-king's able hound.

Crafty Lords of militant mien,

Led vanquished to the slaughter-pen; Thumb-screws and bastinados work

Both Devils' pomp and Soldans' joy; And tantrums coarse in cesspools teem

As women sob for dying men:

The wracks that djinnee fear and shirk,

Are Torture's friend—A Monster's toy!

The rayless styes that guard the bones

Of fall'n kings and grizzled hordes,